I did a monumentally stupid thing
 

So yesterday, Minifob and I were at the PetSmart getting crickets for the pet tarantula. This is an errand we do every Monday while we wait for Minifobette to get out of orchestra practice, so it's very much a deliberate time-killer. As it happened, they were sold out of crickets, so we ended up wandering around the store, and discovered the kitten section where apparently they still sell actual kittens.

And they have a little room where you can play with the kittens if you think you might buy one. And Minifob begged to be allowed to. And the store guy let him. And Minifob was absolutely smitten.

Now, we did not buy the kitten. My stepson is very, very allergic to cats--like horrific skin rash and anaphylaxis allergic--so it's not an option. But I am a profound sucker for my children when they get doe-eyed about something. Because their life is frankly kind of shitty in ways other kids don't have to deal with, and I don't go overboard "making up for it" in an unhealthy manner, but when I get a chance to give them something special I do my best to do it. I decorate our house with Christmas lights every year, for example, even though I'm a genetic bah-humbug and it's a royal pain in the ass, because it makes them happy.

ANYWAY. I really, really, really don't want a dog. I have emotional baggage from having to scoop the poop of my shitty stepfather's dog all the time. But I know it would make the kids astoundingly, squeal-inducingly happy. And normally I can just kind of block that hypothetical image from my mind, but now I have actually seen my son get that way about a kitten, and I can't stop thinking that this is it, I've been broken, we're going to have to get them a dog.

Ideally, it will be a poodle/chihuahua mix with hypoallergenic hair that's several months old and has already been potty-trained. And the fact that I'm typing all that out means I've already thought about it waaay too much. Dammit.

When they whip out those doe-eyes, they've gotchya by the gotchya.

Hey everybody! Clobfobble's getting a dog!

I'm coming back to Texas so I can pet your dog!! When should I book my flight?

Do they have like, puppy rental programs? Where we could go and play with puppies every day and then give them back?

Sure, give your neighbor a puppy for Christmas.

You can volunteer to be a dog walker for an animal shelter--this is a real thing. But it's a scam, because it is known that the dogs will bamboozle you. They have evolved, literally with the express purpose of tricking you, a human, with emotions.

Whatever you do, choose from a dog rescue or the local SPCA or the like; do NOT buy from a breeder or the classifieds or Craigslist.

Personal experience talking here. Also, a Shih Tzu or Lhasa Apso is a good choice. Adorable, small, cheap to feed and not a lot of exercise needed. I would recommend a boxer due to very short hair, not much dander and very child-friendly, but the slobber and energy to burn might overtax you. And the poop. That too.

The Boston Terrier is the smaller, manageable version of the Boxer. That is my own personal theory. I love the Boxer, but they need exercise.

Awwwww!


This thread makes me happy!

Dude, just pet them at the store each week. That way they'll stay young, cute and fluffy too

Just say if you get a puppy now you won't be able to get a pony later. ;)

Not to diss rescue dogs in any way - Mum took on a dog from a rescue organisation and she's wonderful - but I have to add some balance:

My own experience of buying from breeders is very positive. Both my beardies have been bought direct from the breeder. You just need to do the research and be aware of potential pitfalls.

there are potential pitfalls - but that also goes for rescue dogs. The problem with rescue dogs though is that if you take a dog on and then have to give it back you are potentially traumatising that dog who may go through several potential homes before being taken on for real - each time they go off to a prospective new family and then get sent back the dog's confidence takes another deep hit and makes it more likely they will have separation anxiety or other issues that wil make it less likely they will be able to successfully integrate into the nxt family.

As for boxer: they have short hair but they moult. If allergies are a problem stick to double coated dogs, and preferably poodle type dogs.

warning note: poodle mixes are often sold as hypoallergenic but there is no guarantee that the pups of a poodle and other breed will have the poodle's hypoallergenic fur. You have to be very careful with the '-doodles' if that's your reason for buying them. make sure if you're going that route that you go for a line that has stabilised (third or fourth generation) with hypoallergenic fur.

Scotties are hypoallergenic, are they not?

I love my dog, just sayin'.

Not really, I don't think. They are however double coated (like many terriers) so won't moult as much as other dogs.


*correction - apparently they are considered hypoallergenic due to low level of shedding and dander.

Not all low shedding dogs are hypo allergenic though.

Poodles are particularly considered hypoallergenic due to the low shedding, low levels of dander and low presence of allergens in their salivaa (iirc)

Dogs rock, for the most part.

Again, I'll repeat my "Facts for Pet Owners":

Dogs bark for no reason, at 3 am. Cats puke, where you put your bare feet.

spot on. this is the reason my morning routine involves not putting my socks on until I'm downstairs ready to put my shoes on. Too many trips back upstairs for another pair.....

It's done. We get her on Monday. She's abso-fucking-lutely perfect for us and I adore her--which I say as someone who has never felt an emotional connection to a dog before. I will post pictures, I promise.

And now, I will spend the rest of the weekend trying to convince the kids to let me name her Freya.

Simple , just tell them thats her name , stick to it , yer de Momz !!!
( thats getting them a dorg )

Well, that or "Imelda Barkos."

A dog named for the goddess of cats. That's ... different.

What breed? How old? Where from?

Half chihuahua, half... something. Maybe corgi. She looks like a regular tiny chihuahua but with golden retriever ears and fur. Her brother (who we didn't take) looks like 100% chihuahua, except corgi-sized, about twice as big as she is.

They're roughly two years old, abandoned together at the animal shelter from an abusive environment of some sort. Brother seems to have come out of it okay; he marks his territory and is protective in a yappy way, but is generally playful and going to be fine. Sister--the one we've adopted--is an anxiety-ridden mess. She shook for hours when her foster mom first took her out of the shelter, and still does so whenever she meets someone new. Took her about 20 minutes to stop shaking with me when I went to visit, but by the end of it she was cuddling and licking my hand for more belly rubs. Foster mom says she's never heard her bark, and she's generally very low energy and just wants to be held and snuggled all the time. I was concerned about splitting her from the brother, but the foster mom said actually they do better apart; the brother was a playful bully and ran roughshod over her all day long.

The reason I'm sure her previous home was abusive and not just neglectful is that when I came back a second time with the kids, she bolted to the corner of her pen, growled, and peed herself all at once. I feel sure she belonged to a family that let the kids do whatever they wanted to her. But mine are very gentle and certainly understand what anxiety feels like, so with gentle coaxing and patience she eventually came around to them as well. She desperately wants kindness and isn't permanently jaded.

The only thing I'm worried about is that in about a month she has to go back to the shelter to get spayed. The procedure is a requirement of the adoption, and the shelter pays for it, but the foster mom warned me that she's going to freak the fuck out when she sees the shelter again. Once I actually have her in my possession, I'm going to negotiate with them about having it done at our vet instead, just to keep her away from that place. Technically I could just say "fuck you" and not show up for it--I would lose a $100 deposit/bail money that's supposed to ensure that doesn't happen, which I can live with, but the shelter would also probably blacklist me from future adoptions. So I need to get them on board and provide proof it really happened and all that.

Here she is being happy at her foster mom's house. You can see her brother's gigantic paw next to her. This is immediately after being groomed; her fur is much thicker now after a few weeks.

Two more names up for contention, courtesy of my daughter and my husband, respectively:

J.K. Howling
Ginny ('cause she's a little weasly.)

First dog's name was Sadie.

Suh-weet!


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I have a cousin named Freya. Somewhere. I really like the name but....

I like the fun names.

Ginny is awesome because of the provenance and you won't need to find an abbreviation. But Imelda and JK are good too

Too cute!

It's decided: she shall be called Ginny, but--like Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent, I'm informed--that will only be her mild-mannered cover story for her secret identity as the famous author J.K. Howling.

We have not one, not two, but three dogs in the office. One is named Freya. She's the youngest, an Irish Water Spaniel. Cute dog, cute name.

Your pup is a Ginny. Good for you, the kids, the whole dang family!

Now you need a kitten called Tonicky

... and a hamster named Limey.

[emoji194]


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